


The Season is Always Ending

by Yuuchi (Katsumi27)



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Eventual Happy Ending, Family Drama, Forced Marriage, Gender Dysphoria, M/M, Pack Family, Sacrifice, Slow Burn, Trans Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-01
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-13 02:48:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29769534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katsumi27/pseuds/Yuuchi
Summary: Tooru has just been named the next captain of the Aoba Johsai volleyball team when Hajime goes into heat for the first time. The lives they thought they would lead quickly dissolve before their eyes as Tooru struggles to find them a path to safety and Hajime tries to make sense of a world flipped on it's head. But where do they turn when home has become their prison?Sometimes, the world throws things at you that were never meant to happen. Sometimes, you're forced to make sacrifices in order to right wrongs there's no one to blame for. Always, you can choose to live your life without regrets.
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 4
Kudos: 12





	The Season is Always Ending

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thanks to [Ghibli22](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ghibli22/pseuds/ghibli22) for the super constructive feedback. It's taken me a long time to return to this work only because I love the story so much and want to do it justice.

_The beginning was all a blur. Concern flared hot in Tooru's stomach as he carried Hajime to the bench. This was all wrong. They were supposed to be celebrating the third years graduating and Tooru being named the next captain. Wasn't Tooru the one who would forget to eat or sleep? So why was Iwa-chan the one fainting now? And why did it feel like the gym was closing in on them?_

_Gathering his wits, Tooru called out to the team. "Alright, alright. Give him some space, everyone!" He did his best to maintain a smile in his voice that he did not feel. When no one moved away, he looked at the other second years for support and found the same blank look on their faces._

_"I said,_ get away from him!"

_Even from his current position kneeling on the floor in front of Hajime, Tooru's voice carried weight. Everyone in the room took a reflexive step back and a few even seemed to snap out of whatever daze they were in, but Tooru was no longer paying attention to them._

_If he hadn't been kneeling as close as he was he might have missed it, but he didn't. In all their years together, Tooru was still one of the few outside of family who had ever seen Iwa-chan cry, but even he had never heard him_ whimper _._

_Hajime was sitting on the bench, doubled over with his head in his hands, staring at the ground beside Tooru's knees with a look of complete horror. Tooru inhaled sharply at the sight, felt his own head swim, and finally realized what was happening._

_"Mattsun, clear the gym._ **Now** _. He's going into heat."_

Tooru stands now in the shower with his head pressed against the tiles, shivering as his back is pelted with freezing water. He's calm now, he thinks. Except for the tangled knot in his chest that shows no sign of loosening. He understands why, he thinks. But it's not something he knows how to put into words. No, it's not his to speak.

He shuts the water off with a tight squeak, steps out of the shower, and dries himself with a thin towel -- the kind Iwa-chan always preferred over his fluffier ones. The slight scratch is welcome right now.

_"This isn't real, right Oikawa? This is...some kind of fucked up nightmare. This isn't happening. Dammit. Tooru, please--"_

_In his rising panic, Hajime started digging his nails into his upper arms, trying to claw past his own skin with blunt fingernails. At first he just left angry red welts, but eventually he managed to draw blood before Tooru could stop him._

Tooru slips on a pair of clean underwear and walks to his wardrobe. He pulls out he second finest set of formal wear, a gradient blue hakama over a white kimono, and a dark blue haori. The weather is still cool enough this time of year for him not to sweat in it. The gratitude he feels about that is quickly swallowed up by the endless pit in his stomach.

_The walk home was far too long like this, but only barely long enough for Tooru to gather his thoughts. Still, it wasn't until he arrived at the Iwaizumi household -- panting and nearly delirious, with an unconscious Hajime on his back -- that he truly understood the extent of it all. Faced with the familiar entryway to the home he'd spent half his childhood in -- everything from the family portrait in the hallway he'd wormed his way into, to the look of gratitude and relief on the faces of the people he considered his second parents -- he understood that everything would have to change. He understood that he would be the one to change it._

He slicks his hair back in the mirror, the way his grandmother loved but had always made Iwa-chan laugh at him. It makes him feel oddly exposed, even in so many layers of clothing. But that could also just be the knowledge of what he's about to do.

* * *

Tooru dons his best smile and strongest armor as he enters the foyer of the main house. The assistant seems to be clearing up some paperwork to end the day. Tooru is lucky to have caught him. He's sure the assistant feels otherwise and in truth, so does he. "I apologize for the short notice. I would like an audience with the elders. I will wait as long as necessary, so please let them know Oikawa Tooru is here."

The main house is a traditional sprawling complex with far too many empty rooms. The floors of the outer hallways are always polished to a shine almost too slippery to walk on, and the gardens beyond them are meticulously designed and maintained. Tooru proceeds on his own to the familiar conference room and quietly slides the door shut behind him.

It's a plain and elegant twelve-mat room, with a single long table at the center and 8 floor chairs around it. Although he knows the room is not used daily, it's impeccably clean. The flower arrangement in the alcove is freshly made with peach-colored flowers not yet in season, and the wall scroll above it depicts a beautiful blooming tree of the same color over a lake. Tooru notes it's not the same scroll used last spring, or the spring before that.

Tooru allows himself one deep breath before settling down on the cushion at the lower end of the table. He presses his hands onto his lap to avoid gripping at and wrinkling the fabric of his hakama. Even the cushion feels plush compared to the last time he was here, recently re-filled.

The Sendai Clan has a long history in this region. Said to have served under Date Masamune himself, they still pride themselves on being the clan that will "last a thousand generations," and will stop at nothing to secure the future of their clan. The head family had relocated to the suburbs several generations ago, but the presence of the clan continues to be felt in the city and even beyond the prefecture. It's the kind of power the merely wealthy wish they could have but often fall short of.

Tooru holds his perfect posture for as long as he needs to, recalling the ambition that's driven him all the other times he's been in this room. Today, that ambition is only another mask, but still he clings to it. In this silence, the steady knocking of the fountain in the garden outside is loud enough to startle him again and again, the knot in his stomach twisting tighter and tighter each time. He can't relax, can't allow himself to relax or unravel. The slight dimming of the light through the paper doors is the only indication he has of how long he's been waiting.

When the clan elders finally begin to file in and take their places along the table, Tooru bows and greets each of them with practiced grace. He smiles pleasantly at the ones that scowl at him and waves away polite questions about how long he's been waiting, which is easy because he truly doesn't know.

The youngest of the council are dressed similarly to Tooru, but with darker, solid colors and much finer fabric. The eldest are dressed in much simpler kimono in solid blues and browns, all with elegant designs in the fabric itself, perhaps even the clan emblem. Though these people have no one to impress but each other, they have wealth and class woven into their very lives.

A servant pours freshly brewed tea into seven handmade cups before quietly retreating. Tooru doesn't touch his for the time being, his hands still pressed flat against his lap to hide the shaking. For a moment he begins to doubt his choice of dress in favor of something more mature, but he quickly kills the thought. He has practice in leveraging what he has.

Shirai is the first to speak, fixing his apprentice with an expectant look. "Normally we would decline such a sudden request, but it is unusual for you to call for us like this, Tooru. Speak, before the tea grows cold."

Tooru bows deeply, thanks the elder council for their time, and boldly makes his request around the lump in his throat.

...

_"Of course, there is the matter we discussed a few months ago. I believe the council will find this exchange favorable. As for the rest, I think you may find I work even better with the right support."_

* * *

The sun has set by the time Tooru leaves the meeting room with his own words echoing in his mind. He can't remember the last time he saw the brilliant colors of twilight from within the clan's compound. It's a sight he knows best from within the school's courtyard, or from the quiet streets of town walking side by side with Iwa-chan after an exhausting volleyball practice.

Tooru doesn't stop to admire the view, fearing his own hesitation. Between his nerves and a creeping exhaustion he's trying to stave off, he manages to keep a steady and dignified pace as he makes his way down the familiar path to the Iwaizumi household.

The first thing he does when Hajime's mother opens the door is smile and apologize for bothering them this late in the day, to which she replies with a laugh and a question about his outfit. She admits she hadn't expected to see him back the same day. Hajime won't be fit for visitors for at least a week, she informs him. But Tooru isn't here to see Hajime. Not yet.

He does his best to keep the atmosphere light as the three of them settle down at the table with a cup of tea and some snacks, but the light mood is harder for Tooru to carry than what he has to say, so he has no choice but to get down to business before he breaks under the pressure.

"The elders have approved my request to take Hajime as my mate. I'm here to ask you for his hand."

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter takes place in March at the end of Oikawa and Iwaizumi's 2nd year.


End file.
